PORTLAND, Maine – Top-seeded Saint Joseph's College (17-1, 9-0 GNAC) defeated #2 Lasell College (12-6, 8-1 GNAC), 10-3, in the 2015 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Women's Lacrosse Championship at Deering Memorial Stadium on Sunday evening. For the Monks, the conference title is the first in the eight-year history of the program and tonight's triumph extends the team's winning streak to 17 games.
Although Saint Joseph's managed to win by seven goals, the final score does not indicate just how closely contested tonight's game really was, especially in the first half as the Monks held a 6-3 lead after the opening 30 minutes. The contest featured a completely different tone in the second stanza, as the Monks maintained possession for the majority of the closing frame and displayed more patience with their offense, an effort that led to four unanswered goals and accounted for the 10-3 final.
With the victory, Saint Joseph's earns an automatic berth into the 2015 NCAA DIII Tournament, which begins on Wednesday, May 6th. The Monks will learn of their first-round opponent when the national tournament participants are announced next Monday.
Lasell, which captured the 2013 GNAC Championship, appeared in the ECAC Tournament after falling to Norwich University in the 2012 conference title game and could earn another berth into the ECAC tourney this spring. The 2015 ECAC Tournament participants will also be announced next week.
The Monks carried the momentum early, as the hosts scored three goals in the first four minutes of play. Freshman attack Elyse Caiazzo (Scarborough, Maine/Cheverus) opened the game scoring with a man-up marker at the 27:31 mark and junior Kat Gadbois (Scarborough, Maine) followed with her first of two goals on the evening to make it a 2-0 game just 32 seconds later. Senior midfielder Lizzie Calnan (Westport, Mass.) extended the Monks' advantage to 3-0 with an unassisted tally at the 25:57 mark.
Lasell Head Coach Cait Connolly called a timeout immediately after the Calnan goal and whatever adjustments she made seemed to work, as the Lasers began to pour on the offensive pressure and finally found the scoreboard when freshman attack Taylor Yandow (Moretown, Vt.) netted an unassisted goal with 22:19 left in the first half.
SJC sophomore attack Kelsey Dumond (Lewiston, Maine) put her team back on top by three, 4-1, with her 29th goal of the season, scored at the 16:45 mark, but Lasell freshman attack Danielle Chambrelli (Cheshire, Conn.) made it a two-goal game when she steered a shot past Monks junior goalie Michelle Cunha (Enfield, Conn.) on a free-position attempt with 11:07 remaining in the first half.
After nearly three minutes of physical play, Saint Joseph's scored consecutive goals 1:28 apart, as Dumond hit pay dirt off a Mary Leasure (South Portland, Maine/McAuley) pass and Gadbois netted her second of the night – and 10th of the GNAC tourney – to extend the hosts' lead to 6-2 with 7:08 before the break.
Lasell junior attack Bridget Doherty (Franklin, Mass.) cut the visitors' deficit down to 6-3 with her 43rd goal of the year, scored with 2:43 left in the first half, but the Monks managed to stave off a late-half push and held a 6-3 lead heading into halftime.
As it played out, Doherty's goal would be the Lasers' last of the evening, as the Monks' defense stood tall and Cunha came up with a pair of important saves over the closing minutes, allowing the offense to net four straight markers, including three from Caiazzo, in the 10-3 final. Calnan potted the other second stanza goal on a free-position attempt at the 16-minute mark.
Caiazzo paced the SJC offense with four goals and added five ground balls and a pair of caused turnovers while Gadbois scored twice with six ground balls and three caused turnovers and Calnan added a pair of goals with three ground balls and four caused turnovers on the evening. Dumond chipped in with a pair of scores and sophomore midfielder Jackie Wilson (Tiverton, R.I.) contributed five draw controls and three caused turnovers in the victory. In goal, Cunha made four saves to improve to 10-1 on the season.
For the Lasers, junior midfielder Bridget Munnelly (Bellingham, Mass.) tallied seven ground balls and five caused turnovers – both game-highs – while senior goalkeeper Alexa Katsigianis (Amherst, N.H.) registered seven saves in the losing effort.
Overall, Saint Joseph's held advantages in shots (21-13), draw controls (10-5) and ground balls (22-17) in tonight's title bout.
All-Tournament Team:
Kat Gadbois (MVP) – Saint Joseph's
Meghan Williams – Saint Joseph's
Elyse Caiazzo – Saint Joseph's
Mary Leasure – Saint Joseph's
Lizzie Calnan – Saint Joseph's
Toni Minelli - Lasell
Bridget Doherty – Lasell
Alexa Katsigianis – Lasell
Lydia Knapp – Johnson & Wales
Jordan Britt – Johnson & Wales
Sarah Wootten – Emmanuel
Savannah Lundwall - Emmanuel
#GOMONKS
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Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 474-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.
